​ Everything that God created is distinctive. The church is no different; it is distinctive by its design and very nature. In order to live up to its identity, the church must maintain its distinctiveness.

On the evening of His betrayal Jesus went to Gethsemane to pray, saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me;” (Lk. 22:42). It is rather incredible to contemplate what would have been the spiritual state of mankind had God the Father answered “Yes” to the prayer of our Lord that evening. But Jesus made His request conditional: “if it is Your will, take this cup from Me.” He further emphasized His submission to the will of the Father by saying, “not My will, but Yours, be done.” The prayer seems to indicate a personal desire on the part of Jesus- perhaps an expression of His human nature- to not have to go to the cross. But His greater desire to do God’s will echoes in those words “not My will, but Yours, be done."

​ Many people claim to be spiritual but not religious. What they really mean is they don’t believe they have to be involved with a church, and they don’t have to be in church services in order to live a spiritual life. This seems to be a growing trend. Is it possible to be truly spiritual without also being religious?

​ There is a difference between being truly spiritual and just being religious. I suspect that many people have a difficult time clearly differentiating between the two concepts. Most people probably equate religious practices with being spiritual. But a person can be religious without being truly spiritual. However, a person cannot be truly spiritual without also being religious. A truly spiritual person will be a religious person, but a religious person may not necessarily live a truly spiritual lifestyle. Allow me to illustrate by way of a purely hypothetical scenario.

​ Attitude! We all have one. It’s often difficult for us to see our own, but it’s obvious to everyone else. We often deny ours while pointing out everyone else’s. It can be either positive or negative, the source of encouragement or discouragement, produce joy or anger, lead to our own fulfillment or despair. It can be as elusive as the wind and as powerful as dynamite.

​ Many churches teach that once a person is saved he/she can never be lost, no matter what. If that is true, why did God guide the writers of scripture to include so many exhortations to saved Christians to remain faithful? Why Jesus, in His letter to the church at Smyrna, instruct those Christians to “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” (Rev. 2:10)? He said He would give them “the crown of life” (eternal life, synonymous with salvation) after, as a result of, their having remained faithful unto (up until and even including dying for their faith) death. Why “faithful unto death” if, having already been saved, they could not be lost?

​ The New Testament scriptures, either directly or indirectly, continually emphasize the importance of unity within the Lord’s church. Why? Many people mistake union for unity. There can be no unity without union, but there can be union without unity. People who are united are also naturally in union with each other. But many people find themselves in some kind of union with other people with whom they are definitely not united. A classic example is a married couple who can’t stand to be around each other. There’s a union- marriage- but there’s no unity.

“Have It Your Way!” That was the advertising line for a popular hamburger chain some years back. But the principle is not unique to that particular chain. Every chain of hamburger restaurants will let you have it your way. Just tell ‘em how you want your hamburger- with cheese or without, with pickles or without, with ketchup and mustard or without, with mustard but no ketchup or ketchup but no mustard- and they’ll fix it however you want it. If you don’t like the hamburgers sold in one chain, you have a whole lot of other chains to choose from. You can have your hamburger, however you want it, your way!

​ We are faced with choices everyday. After the Israelites had crossed the Jordan river, had fought the battles and taken possession of the promised land, Joshua called the people together and told them to make a decision of commitment: “And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Josh. 24:15). They needed to choose, one way or the other.